Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

I did not have this on my fuck 2025 bingo card.

People are complicated. Love is not.

The most dangerous place for a black man in America is in a white man’s imagination.

Trumpflation is an intolerable hardship for every American, and it’s Trump’s fault.

Accountability, motherfuckers.

Giving in to doom is how authoritarians win.

Second rate reporter says what?

A norm that restrains only one side really is not a norm – it is a trap.

When you’re a Republican, they let you do it.

Sometimes the world just tells you your cat is here.

The republican ‘Pastor’ of the House is an odious authoritarian little creep.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

Their freedom requires your slavery.

Tide comes in. Tide goes out. You can’t explain that.

We can’t confuse what’s necessary to win elections with the policies that we want to implement when we do.

Just because you believe it, that does not make it true.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

This fight is for everything.

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

Sadly, media malpractice has become standard practice.

The media handbook says “controversial” is the most negative description that can be used for a Republican.

It’s all just conspiracy shit beamed down from the mothership.

American history and black history cannot be separated.

You are here: Home / Science & Technology / Energy Policy / Tuesday Evening Open Thread: Stay Watchful

Tuesday Evening Open Thread: Stay Watchful

by | 206 Comments

This post is in: , ,

… The Geminids are the last meteor shower of 2016, and you should be able to catch them between December 12 and December 15. The peak of the shower will be late at night on December 13 and early in the morning of December 14.

You’ll see the most meteors at around 2 a.m. local time, when the meteors radiate from directly overhead. The supermoon will also be visible, and even though the bright moon will make it harder to see the meteors, the Geminids are large enough that you should still be able to catch the brightest shooting stars.

Anybody going to be out there watching for meteors tonight?

(Our attempt this summer to see the Leonids shower was a major #FAIL, which ended with us & three wired little dogs stuck in a six-hour pre-dawn traffic tie-up, so I’m not even gonna mention this to the Spousal Unit… )

Speaking of immense fusterclucks, here’s a small piece of good news from The Resistance:


.

Apart from scienterrific scienterrorism, what’s on the agenda for the evening?

Reader Interactions

206Comments

  2. 2.

    trollhattan

    Heavy overcast here so will only see the moon’s well-cloaked glow. Here’s a neat thing–Tesla-Solar City have completely converted an island in American Samoa from diesel to solar power, even with multiple days battery backup.

  5. 5.

    germy

    Scientists are frantically copying U.S. climate data, fearing it might vanish under Trump

    Alarmed that decades of crucial climate measurements could vanish under a hostile Trump administration, scientists have begun a feverish attempt to copy reams of government data onto independent servers in hopes of safeguarding it from any political interference.

  8. 8.

    trollhattan

    @germy:
    Compare and contrast: at this point in the Bush2 administration they were busy deleting millions of emails. Gee, should they be hauled before a House select committee to account for those?

  10. 10.

    jk

    @Yarrow:

    “Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of the scientific community?”

    For the win!

    Trump is an unprecedented prick and hopefully the Democrats can mitigate the damage this orange faced ratfucker can inflict over the next 4 years.

  12. 12.

    Yarrow

    So how long before the wall is built? I mean the one Canada builds on its southern border. They’re going to be sharing a very long border with an unstable state run by a dictator. I’m sure they’ll want to protect themselves.

  13. 13.

    Comrade Colette Collaboratrice

    Too cloudy to see cool sky stuff here in San Francisco, as it has been for the last several meteor showers. Sigh.

    ETA: On the plus side, we get our twice-yearly chance to drive our Priuses through flooding caused by king tides and get stuck. It’s a holiday tradition!

  14. 14.

    MomSense

    @danielx:

    INORITE. I’m frozen and sitting as close to the fire as possible without actually sitting in the fire.

    And I think the merchants have caught on to my my bah humbug attitude about Christmas because I have about 1,100 unread emails and I don’t know how they got through my filters. Ugh. It’s like having another part time job just to sort through it all.

    In happier news my middle kid is having the time of his life in Brooklyn. And he connected with a bunch of professional dancers who share an apartment in Harlem. From what I gather (from his brother) he is experiencing a personal kind of renaissance. Of course I wasn’t happy about the photo of him standing on a rooftop way too close to the edge. I hope the gods of youthful foolishness are smiling on him.

    So aside from a quick peak at the super moon I’ll save my stargazing for summer when my eyeballs won’t freeze.

    Oh and I’ll put in a quick plug for the tv show Startalk. Science rules!

  17. 17.

    MomSense

    @debit:

    Merry Christmas Walter, Ellie and you dear Debit. How are his treatments going? Hoping he is feeling much better.

  19. 19.

    raven

    CNN)Ohio Gov. John Kasich vetoed a measure that would have outlawed abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected while approving a law that outlaws abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

    The vetoed proposal, commonly referred to as the “heartbeat bill,” would have been the nation’s strictest time-based legislation, banning abortions around six weeks.
    Kasich said he vetoed the amendment to avoid lengthy and costly litigation at taxpayers’ expense that was likely to end in defeat, based on recent case law.

  23. 23.

    debit

    @MomSense: He is doing really well. Still a little gimpy between shots, but he’s putting on muscle on his bad hind leg, so decided improvement in his mobility. His massage therapist sees progress every visit; not leaps and bounds but we’re happy with anything we can get. Merry Christmas to you and yours!

  24. 24.

    Comrade Scrutinizer

    Scientists are frantically copying U.S. climate data, fearing it might vanish under Trump.

    The Internet Archive is doing the same thing—duplicating all its content in Canada. They’ve got a fund-raising gig going on now.

  26. 26.

    MomSense

    @debit:

    Happy to hear he’s responding well. You and your pups are a definite bright spot in this otherwise dreadful year.

  31. 31.

    Pogonip

    I like that picture.

    No Geminids this year. Cloudy tonight and dangerous, polar-vortex cold the next two. Frostbite cold. Darn it.

  34. 34.

    MomSense

    @Yarrow:

    Gross. I saw on twitter yesterday someone posted a photo of der trump with advisors sitting around himand they called the Twitter eggs. Damn if they didn’t look like Twitter eggs.

    Apparently a bunch of the white supremacists have apartments and spend time in Moscow. Who knew that all the Russians had to do to win the Cold War was embrace white supremacy? I’m so old I remember when the paranoia was that the Civil Rights Movement was a Communist plot.

  37. 37.

    PsiFighter37

    @Iowa Old Lady: It was a bit disconcerting to read an article about this, which mentioned that Steven Chu was a Nobel Laureate, Moniz is a nuclear physicist, and Perry…has a bachelors in animal science.

    What the fuck is animal science? Is that some kind of made-up major for idiots in Texas?

  41. 41.

    raven

    @PsiFighter37:

    Animal Science (also Animal Bioscience) is described as “studying the biology of animals that are under the control of humankind”. Historically, the degree was called animal husbandry and the animals studied were livestock species, like cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry, and horses.

  45. 45.

    Fester Addams

    @PsiFighter37:

    …Steven Chu was a Nobel Laureate, Moniz is a nuclear physicist, and Perry…has a bachelors in animal science.

    Yes, sure, but now he’s got smart-boy glasses.

  51. 51.

    Yarrow

    @Jeffro: It’s all over the internets. I hope some Dem in the confirmation hearings asks him about it.

    Edit: I should say, if there are confirmation hearings. Are those required? Or merely convention?

  53. 53.

    Mothra

    That is such wonderful news. Thank you for sharing it.

    It’s been an exhausting month at work and the election and aftermath has drained me.

    Seeing this act of resistance and courage has lifted me up.

  54. 54.

    Kathleen

    Very cloudy tonight. The moon is right above me outside my office window and it fades in and out of the clouds. Sometimes it looks like it’s being sucked into a vortex, then it reappears. It looks like the moon is dancing.

  55. 55.

    joel hanes

    @PsiFighter37:

    What the fuck is animal science? Is that some kind of made-up major for idiots in Texas?

    If your career orientation is to inherit the family farm and raise livestock or dairy or poultry, you go off to your agricultural state’s Great Landgrant Institution (Moo U.) and major in Animal Science. Basic biology and animal husbandry, and the economics of hedging and managing a corporate farm. I suppose people who are very into pets or want to work in a veterinarian’s office might find the degree useful, too.

    Full disclosure : I spent five years at Moo U. to get my engineering degree. It was just fine.

  57. 57.

    Yarrow

    Apparently we’re up to 40 electors asking to be briefed on Russian involvement in the election. All Dems except the one Republican elector who already said he wasn’t voting for Trump.

  58. 58.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Holy fuck. I just saw the clip of Chris Hayes asking St Bernard about his definition of “political correctness”: It means trade policy, and you can’t offend powerful people.

  59. 59.

    Original Lee

    Too cloudy tonight to see anything fun in the sky. It’s supposed to precipitate (what kind will depend on the temperature at the moment), starting around 10 PM and lasting through to morning. I’m mildly bummed.

  60. 60.

    Yarrow

    I don’t really follow entertainment stuff all that much. Does anyone know if Kanye West is getting some heat for meeting with Trump? I mean from his fans. Wondering how it might affect his career.

  63. 63.

    Yarrow

    @Baud: It he actually performing at the inauguration? Was the “George Bush doesn’t care about black people” comment before or after his mother died? Seems like he has not been the same since that happened.

  65. 65.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Kathleen:

    It looks like the moon is dancing.

    :-)

    Very poetic.

    (It is very overcast/hazy/misty in north Atlanta suburbs. At the moment it’s not quite raining, but looks as though it could start any minute now. I can see a slightly light area where I suppose the moon is lurking, but I don’t think she’s going to show her face tonight.)

  66. 66.

    Yarrow

    So this is inspirational. Since the election over 4,500 women are deciding to run for office in 2018. There are some training programs out there to prepare women for public leadership roles. Click through the tweet below for a video.

    Thousands of women were inspired by Hillary Clinton to run for office https://t.co/WLog6GSoAV— NowThis (@nowthisnews) December 13, 2016

  68. 68.

    Yarrow

    @efgoldman: That’s what I thought. I doubt there will be confirmation hearings. Dictatorships don’t do things like that. Probably some distraction like a bomb going off in a major U.S. city to provide cover. Then “We must confirm Tillerson immediately!”

  69. 69.

    tobie

    @Yarrow:

    Does anyone know if Kanye West is getting some heat for meeting with Trump?

    I couldn’t say. But I do remember Hillary getting lots of heat for appearing with JayZ two days before the election. IOKIYAR.

  70. 70.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Major Major Major Major: I was looking for a transcript, but it doesn’t look like it’s been posted yet. Googling Chris Hayes Bernie Sanders Political Correctness gets a lot of this of right wing sites triumphantly bugling that Bernie Sanders admits Clinton lost because of political correctness, including the Blaze and something called LUcianne dot com, which if this were twenty years ago I’d guess was the beast that spawned Jonah Goldberg, but that can’t still be alive

  74. 74.

    satby

    @debit: tried to comment over at Flickr but don’t have an account, so putting it here: Sweet pic! Glad it’s all worked out so well, he clearly enjoys his life with you and Ellie.
    Have a wonderful holiday season debit!

  76. 76.

    bmoak

    If there is one performer that would agree to perform at The Donald’s inauguration and then stop in the middle of his set to blast Trump, it would be Kanye.

  78. 78.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Looking for good news, Trump has apparently appointed MT’s AL Congresscritter as Interior Secretary, which is probably bad news, but here’s a couple of possible silver linings

    Dave Weigel ‏@ daveweigel 4h4 hours ago
    Pulling Ryan Zinke into the cabinet also creates a special House race in MT. Dem Denise Juneau ran ahead of HRC this year, may try again

    Dave Weigel Retweeted POLITICO Pro
    In related news, Sen. Jon Tester has won a third term.

  79. 79.

    Botsplainer

    @Yarrow:

    Republican electors are voting for Trump.

    Based on what I think Trump is going to accomplish by way of foreign recklessness in service of lining his own pockets, I’m anticipating that the death toll among American service members should be high enough that more than a few of them will want to blow their own brains out in the knowledge of what they did.

  80. 80.

    hovercraft

    @germy:

    Scientists are frantically copying U.S. climate data, fearing it might vanish under Trump

    Between this and the internets being backed up in Canada, in case the new administration continues it’s tradition of trying to disappear things from their website(s), our Northern friends hold the archives of how the world ended.

  81. 81.

    Yarrow

    @bmoak: Wasn’t Kanye going to run for president in 2020? That would put him in direct competition with Trump if he did. Not that he’s going to, but there was some rambling thing at an awards show where he said that, I think.

  82. 82.

    satby

    Last year the exchange daughters and I went out to watch the Geminids and Qunoot saw her very first shooting star! It’s pretty cold here, and there’s way too much light pollution where I live now, but I remember that thrill when we would spot a good fireball in the sky.

    Our work event provided eye exams and new glasses for 16 homeless folks from the shelters, and a couple were referred for other health issues that were discovered. So, a good day.
    Repeating again from this morning, if you have a stash of old eyeglasses you can bring them to any LensCrafters to donate to the Gift of Sight program, where they are recycled.

  85. 85.

    Yarrow

    @Botsplainer: Well, when they’re all made to torture people they may have some nightmares about that.

    You’re much more confident that I am that the war is going to be Over There somewhere. I think the California folks who think they’re safely ensconced in a progressive blue state might want to remember they’re an enticing big target for either China or a rogue North Korea if one of them gets a little bomb happy and wants to throw around their weight. Possibly China using NK as a proxy to stir things up.

  87. 87.

    Steve in the ATL

    @SiubhanDuinne: BTW that link you posted the other day to the DEA Christmas ornament…I’m having a lot of fun looking at their entire selection of DEA gifts and debating which friend needs a DEA umbrella or DEA golf balls or a DEA dog collar or a DEA leash or a DEA chip bag clip (available in navy or black!). The possibilities are endless!

    Would love to see LAO tee off with DEA golf balls!

    Also, for anyone on a tight budget–the DEA backpack is on sale, as is last year’s Christmas ornament.

  88. 88.

    SiubhanDuinne

    So now Alan Thicke has died.

    Was never a big fan of his, but still….

    RIP.

    And, for the gasquillionth time, FY 2016.

  90. 90.

    hovercraft

    @debit:
    Soo cute!
    He looks so happy, he looks so different from when John found him, great job.
    Happy holidays to you and yours.

  93. 93.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Steve in the ATL:

    Wish I could take credit, because it sounds like an awesome site, but I wasn’t the one who linked to that. You must be confusing me with some other incredibly amazing and wonderful commenter.

  101. 101.

    hovercraft

    @Baud:

    Things I never thought I’d have to say:

    I’d vote for Kanye over Trump.

    Me too, but my first choice is still,
    Enough of This Shit Baud 2020 !

  105. 105.

    tobie

    OT…in the face of the carnage in Aleppo, Amb. Samantha Power speaks out at the UN today:

    link to Guardian video

    It’s the most gutsy thing I’ve heard from any progressive in the past few weeks, and it’s a reminder of how important it will be to speak up and speak out against injustice in the next four years.

  107. 107.

    jk

    @PsiFighter37:

    What the fuck is animal science? Is that some kind of made-up major for idiots in Texas?

    I’m less concerned with Rick Perry’s college degree than with the fact that he’s a stone cold stupid motherfucker as demonstrated by his presidential campaigns. As the saying goes, “He wouldn’t know how to pour piss from a boot if the instructions were printed on the heel”.

    Trump is giving his dumbass supporters the kakistocracy they deserve. I just wish that the rest of us didn’t have to suffer through this nightmare.

  110. 110.

    Anne Laurie

    @PsiFighter37:

    What the fuck is animal science?

    Don’t diss animal science, it’s the basic building block for learning to be a smart farmer (or any of a variety of fields that deal with raising animals). Even 40 years ago, when I was in a pre-veterinary program at a land grant university, it involved a certain amount of math and a lot of technology — it’s not supposed to be a program where the jocks and legacy kids can be safely stashed.

  111. 111.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @jk:

    He wouldn’t know how to pour piss from a boot if the instructions were printed on the heel.

    LOL! I don’t know if that’s original with you, but I’m definitely stealing it!!

  114. 114.

    coin operated

    @Yarrow: Does anyone know if Kanye West is getting some heat for meeting with Trump?

    I don’t know about his fans, but you can damn well be sure there will be a condescending tweet (or three) from Trump if Kanye does say something bad about him. I think that *all* these meetings are setups (see Stone’s remarks re: Romney).

    Was there *anyone* else in the room? No? Then Donnie can make up whatever he wants and his words will be the gospel.

  117. 117.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Baud:

    Don’t you dare.

    No immediate plans. In fact, my intention is to stick around for another couple of decades and flex my Mob Enforcer muscles at every opportunity.

  121. 121.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Steve in the ATL:

    In that case, I’m glad he moved on before the carnage gets underway. My 86-year-old cousin who died just two days before the election would also have been horrified, and for her sake I’m glad she didn’t have to see any of the looming shitshow.

  127. 127.

    ThresherK (GPad)

    Is there another TV Sitcom Dad , in a show that fan several years, who was a Canadian?

    Or was Thicke basically it, compared to all the people from William Bendix to Ray Romano?

  128. 128.

    Yarrow

    @Botsplainer:

    Republican electors are voting for Trump.

    Well, we’ll see. This could be wishful thinking:

    We believe there are now at least 20 GOP electors considering a vote of conscience. Last week, there was 1. https://t.co/fdiwkbef04— Lessig (@lessig) December 13, 2016

    Edit: Apparently Chuck Todd was interviewing him today and said something like, if we aren’t going to let the electoral college do what it’s there to do then we should just abolish it

  130. 130.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Yarrow:

    Apparently Chuck Todd was interviewing him today and said something like, if we aren’t going to let the electoral college do what it’s there to do then we should just abolish it.

    Chuck Todd, unsurprisingly, seems to have very little idea of what’s involved in amending the Constitution.

  131. 131.

    Steve in the ATL

    Thanks all, though I didn’t mean to hijack the thread, and apologies to any posters who are members of the Thicke family and aren’t getting enough attention. He did have a good life (was FAIA for you architects out there) and died peacefully at home. Couldn’t ask for more.

    In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Jill Stein Recount Fund.

  132. 132.

    Steve in the ATL

    @Yarrow:

    Apparently Chuck Todd was interviewing him today and said something like, if we aren’t going to let the electoral college do what it’s there to do then we should just abolish it

    What a day–on top of everything, I sort of agree with Chuck Todd on something!

  137. 137.

    mike in dc

    @Botsplainer:

    Nuke usage would destabilize a hell of a lot more than the region. Nuking Tokyo(successfully) would crater global markets(tasteless pun intended).

  141. 141.

    Jeffro

    @Yarrow: and its only Tuesday! We only need 37

    Heck as much as I want the EC to miraculously come to its senses and elect Hillary, if the whole thing gets thrown to the house there are benefits there… just picture what happens that the GOP if some of them think that the most helpful thing to do is to put Pence in there. Trump will have a stroke

  144. 144.

    jk

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    I don’t know if that’s original with you

    It’s not original with me, I read it in a book. I think it may have been Stephen Ambrose’s Rise to Globalism.

  149. 149.

    japa21

    @Jeffro: As I understand it, the House can only choose between the top three people who received electoral votes. Not sure that if electors just chose not to vote so that neither got to 270, how the House would go. I can’t see enough Republicans voting for Clinton.

    And then of course, I could be all wrong about the first part and clueless about the second. My being so has happened before in my 69 years, although I can’t remember the last time.

  150. 150.

    coin operated

    @Botsplainer:

    The Norks toss their rocks at Japan for maximum regional destabilization. Lower yield. Major freak outs.

    They don’t have to use nukes. The Norks have thousands of conventional artillery tubes pointed at Seoul, and have promised to use them as a first strike weapon. Casualty estimates are in the multiple 100K range in the first 60 minutes.

    @Yarrow:

    I’m not worried about strikes here on our soil when plenty of damage can be done to our allies abroad. We discovered we had some actual limits in force projection during our little foray into Iraq V.2.0. I’m sure aggressor nations took note.

  152. 152.

    Mnemosyne

    @tobie:

    I have to (kind of) snark for a moment: apparently you didn’t get the memo, but Power is actually despised by most “progressives” as the most warmongering warmongerer who ever warmongered because she feels that preventing genocide is a valid reason for the US to use its military power. So, no, most “progressives” are going to hate that speech and whine about how Power is the worst person in the world for making it.

    Democrats, on the other hand, will be spellbound.

  153. 153.

    hovercraft

    @rikyrah:

    “You know what solves it? When the economy crashes, when the country goes to total hell and everything is a disaster. Then you’ll have a [chuckles], you know, you’ll have riots to go back to where we used to be when we were great.”

    The man is a sociopath, these are peoples lives he’s playing with.
    WASF

  154. 154.

    jk

    @Yarrow: @Jeffro:

    If the Electoral College were to summon up the courage to cast enough votes for Hillary to win this race, it would be the 21st century equivalent of the ending from Frank Capra’s It’s A Wonderful Life.

  156. 156.

    Mai.naem.mobile

    Jeezus, Alan Thicke died. They’re taking all the sitcom old peoples away,well,except for Bill Cosby.

  157. 157.

    Mnemosyne

    @Steve in the ATL:

    I’m so sorry. I’m super freaked out right now because my (step)mom is probably going to need heart surgery early next year, and I don’t know what the hell is going to happen. She’s been my mom for almost 40 years since my mother died when I was 7, so it’s going to be a pretty big deal if something goes wrong.

  161. 161.

    Yarrow

    @Jeffro: Yeah, I just don’t know what the best thing is at this point. Trump getting in is a disaster. But he might do some clearly illegal things right away and it’s so obvious because he’s so inept that a groundswell develops to impeach him. That would mean Pence would get in but the whole thing would take awhile and be a complete mess and maybe he’d be hobbled in the damage he could do.

    Then again maybe Trump is too dangerous and Pence would be a better choice. But he’s really no better and is possibly worse than Trump. Plus he’s got the veneer of respectability so he looks like a president and wouldn’t scare people in the same way. Functionally would anything change? Maybe the Russia stuff. Who knows.

    Toss to the House and Trump voters are angry. Then if they vote for Trump and scenario A above happens they own it. “They should have known” becomes the battle cry and maybe more Republicans lose seats.

    Also possible, thought unlikely, the electors vote for Hillary. She goes into office very damaged and best case scenario is she holds the line on Obamacare and maybe gets to appoint a Supreme Court Justice. I don’t see much else getting done but those would be good. I’d expect her to be a one term president, if that. However, I also see that midterm voters are so angry, and Dems feel they averted the worst, and combined with voter suppression Dem candidates get destroyed in 2018 and we’re even worse off.

    I just don’t know what the best option is. Oh, I forgot one – hold a new election.

  165. 165.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    I continue to bring you hope…

    Josh Kraushaar ‏@ HotlineJosh 48m48 minutes ago
    Dems need to net 24 seats to win back majority. And 21-23 House Rs in CLINTON districts

    (no link ’cause Kraushaar’s a dick. Just enjoy the stat.)

  167. 167.

    tobie

    @Mnemosyne: Yes, I do recall she’s been criticized for being an interventionist when, after everything that’s happened in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya, we’re skeptical about what you can accomplish with military force. But I did find the statement powerful given the nature of the moment. She was speaking in the UN on behalf of the US criticizing a country (Russia) to whom we will soon be giving carte blanche. Heck, Trump wants to emulate them. Suspect someone of terrorism…torture their families. Break the Geneva Conventions, it’s a-okay. That’s what made her question, “Is there anything that can shame you,” so powerful. It’s a question to be asked of the American people after this election. End of Rant.

  168. 168.

    schrodinger's cat

    I saw Hasee to Phasee this Sunday. Loved it! Nerdy science girl gets the handsome guy. The lead pair and most of the ensemble cast was very relatable. Hindi movies have come a long way in ten years when I saw none.
    I can’t stand the comic book superhero stuff that Hollywood seems to churn out these days.
    My favorite song from the movie.

  169. 169.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @i:

    I never had a drill sergeant, but it’s a fine well-crafted phrase, and I plan to use it often.

  171. 171.

    jk

    @Yarrow:

    The electors vote for Hillary.

    I’ll take my chances with all of the negative consequences you wrote after that sentence because Donald Trump is too fucking dumb and too fucking dishonest to lead this country.

  172. 172.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @Steve in the ATL: Sadly they seem to be out of Deputy Ducks. Which is what I call the rubber ducks with a police hat and a DEA badge on the chest. I still have 2; I gave probably a dozen as gifts. I have also given a (previous year’s, on sale) DEA ornament. I’m weird like that. I’m inordinately sad not to see Deputy Ducks at the site. I happily paid full price for those.

  175. 175.

    barbequebob

    @PsiFighter37:
    While Perry is no doubt an idiot, Animal Science is a legitimate major, focused on the biology and husbandry of animals, mostly domesticated ones, e.g. farm animals. You can major in Animal Science at every land grant college in the US, which tend to be the large state universities established in the 19th century, generally as Ag Schools in the beginning

    I went to one. It is now called The University of Massachusetts at Amherst, which began in 1862 as the Massachusetts Agricultural College.

    PS. Agree with you on all other points

  176. 176.

    jk

    @Baud:

    I recently saw It’s a Wonderful Life on NBC for the umpteenth time and even with commercial interruptions, I enjoyed it as much as when I saw it for the very first time decades ago.

  180. 180.

    Steve in the ATL

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I am the walrus.*

    *Actually, that was my dad’s nickname on his college swim team.

    OO’s dad is Craig Stadler. Dossier updated.

    And we can all agree that that towel penalty in ’87 was bullshit. PGA is worse than the NFL.

  183. 183.

    Yarrow

    It’s Russian hackers all the way down:

    But there was never anything quite like the 2016 election campaign, when a handful of Democratic House candidates became targets of a Russian influence operation that made thousands of pages of documents stolen by hackers from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in Washington available to Florida reporters and bloggers.

    “It was like I was standing out there naked,” said Annette Taddeo, a Democrat who lost her primary race after secret campaign documents were made public. “I just can’t describe it any other way. Our entire internal strategy plan was made public, and suddenly all this material was out there and could be used against me.”
    …
    “This is not a traditional tit-for-tat on a partisan political campaign, where one side hits the other and then you respond,” said Kelly Ward, executive director of the D.C.C.C. “This is an attack by a foreign actor that had the intent to disrupt our election, and we were the victims of it.”

  184. 184.

    Mike in NC

    Some other people were “unsettled” when a guy much like Trump came to power in their country. What was their problem?

  185. 185.

    jenn

    @Yarrow: That’s what I think is needed: a new election. Right now there’s a constitutional crisis everywhere we look – the election of Trump was an effect of the interference by a foreign government (and yes, other causal factors, but this was a big one), but were the electors to select Hillary somehow, that’s going the other way, because she won fewer states. Constitutional crisis, whichever side we look at – the only way forward is to hold another election. Without another election neither can/could govern with legitimacy.

    Not (at all) saying that a new election is likely to happen, but I do think it’s the only way to make sure that the President has actual legitimacy to govern.

  188. 188.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @Steve in the ATL: I should note that I totally want a rosewood badge medallion desk wedge with “Quality Control Director” as my job title. Sadly, my LEO ex, while we remain quite friendly, would be quite amused but is unlikely to get it for me. ::pouts::

    More importantly, my condolences.

  189. 189.

    Jaker

    Trumps Cabinet = Old Army Men, Wall St. iffy blokes, an oil man, fast food man, a sort of doctor, God forbid, Sarah Palin & Rick Perry, aargh, a few Millionaire women, a few Right Wingers (OK, well very, very, Right, aargh) and the rest…old Washington Hacks.

    Now, Donald the Trump…says that is cleaning the swamp, yea? I say it’s filling it up again, with “Crocodiles”!

  190. 190.

    Anne Laurie

    @Mike J:

    If you ever wanted to get rid of the electoral college, have them hand an election to a Democrat.

    There would be a certain political symmetry to having the first woman president win the popular vote, lose the assumed electoral vote, get appointed president when those electors decide ‘their’ candidate is Not Possible… after which the angry conservative luzers voters amend the Constitution to make it impossible for any future candidate to “win” by amassing key electors in a few states.

    Not that I think it’ll happen, but it’d certainly be fun for the historians!

  192. 192.

    Mnemosyne

    @Yarrow:

    “It was like I was standing out there naked,” said Annette Taddeo, a Democrat who lost her primary race after secret campaign documents were made public. “I just can’t describe it any other way. Our entire internal strategy plan was made public, and suddenly all this material was out there and could be used against me.”

    And yet I still have fucking “leftist” morons telling me that the release of all of this information was a good thing by definition (because Information Wants To Be Free) and it was good and right that The People knew about (for example) Taddeo’s evil machinations to get elected to office.

    Like all true libertarians, the fact that there was an imbalance of information never occurs to them for a fucking millisecond.

  194. 194.

    Another Scott

    @Comrade Scrutinizer: Yup. They have a 1:1 match.

    Thanks for the pointer. I just donated. It’s an amazing resource, and more essential than ever in this time of “fake news” and worse.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  195. 195.

    chopper

    @raven:

    fucking dumbass. kasich doesn’t realize the grift is all about the losing. a shitty piece of shit bill with no chance of making it past even a district court is what you want. you don’t want to actually overturn abortion rights, dumbass. that’s the goose that lays golden eggs.

  196. 196.

    Larkspur

    @Comrade Colette Collaboratrice: Hey, yeah, it was a about a year ago when we had a heavy rain and a king tide and I and the friend who generously agreed to drive me to UCSF for a colonoscopy were three hours late because of the flooding. (I still had the procedure because everyone else was late too.) Good times.

  198. 198.

    Jaker

    @Yarrow: It had to be Russian interference, what am I saying? It was Russian interference…for the simple reason the email flood stopped …just like “Magic” right on the day of the election. The Russians (Putin/Lavrov & Cronies work was done in association with Brietbart smart asses, Trump , Barron, & Wikileaks. The conspiracy they thought they’d get away with. Like Watergate…I mean “Trump-gate”.

    Trump is trying to do a Putin on America…like be a bully, take the press for granted, tweet crazily his twitters…and avoid press conferences. He’s trying hard to get a free pass to that magic January day…when he becomes your “Tzar” and rule the world in his own crazy way like his fellow friend, Tzar Putin. If Trump goes all the way? Putin will get an a-la-carte menu to do as he pleases throughout the Balkan States first & then who knows? He’s already today told Germany’s Chancellor Merkel that he’s threatening the supply of gas to Europe through Ukraine over the Winter.

    You have been warned.

    PS. I have studied Russia since Putin got in by tricking & framing Yeltsin…the rest is a dirty political history story and it could be outreaching to your neck of the woods (USA) in the future. Electoral College…better make the right choice in the days to come.

  201. 201.

    chopper

    @Yarrow:

    so trump meets with a crazier’n squirrel shit black rap artist who spent the better part of the last two weeks in the nuthouse. and scaredy cat white people who gave trump the oval office don’t give a shit. the double standard with white people is amazing.

  203. 203.

    Mnemosyne

    @Another Scott:

    One of the creepiest short stories I ever read was by (I think) Gahan Wilson. A group of picnickers meets a pair of mysterious men on a beach and realize too late why they keep being referred to as oysters …

  204. 204.

    The Lodger

    @chopper: So Trump meets with a millionaire who just spent two weeks in LA Neuro Psych. Aren’t there a couple of cabinet positions that haven’t been filled yet?

  206. 206.

    Gvg

    @chopper: the meeting with Kayne is being considered Trump trying to distract us again with a show. I think this is correct. Kanye is not actually important compared to Russian hacking. We are learning.

Comments are closed.